Fedco Indian 5 Gallon Poly Fire Pump Model FER501

I like the quality and design built into the backpack pump making it comfortable to wear and easy to use. The spray wand is very high quality. I intend to use it, when needed, for spot fire control on our property during fire season. I live within city limits but there is a lot of open ground with no grass, shrub control that can easily catch fire, especially during hot, dry summers. We always had an Indian Fire Pump on the combine during grain harvest on our farm when growing up. It was always handy to used on spot fires starting from an overheated bearing and stopped wide spread fires.

Update - the factory quickly responded and is replacing the defective part. Could not ask for more. I am upgrading back to five stars for the great and quick fixNice pump but a defective mounting for the metal plate which acts as a clamp to hold the spray nozzle. Within minutes of opening the box, as i attached the backpack straps, the two top metal rivets that secure the metal clamp plate to the plastic body just popped off. This is a poor design or a poor manufacturing defect. An item that is used for emergency fire fighting should not have metal mounting rivets pop off when very slight pressure is applied to the mounting plate. I have previously purchased five Fedco pumps, and this is the first time I have seen this type of defect. Rather than shipping a big heavy item back to the manufacturer i will just drill out the rivet holes and buy some small bolts to plate. Still the manufacturer needs to improve this defect.

This items is well designed, and fabricated. It is what I would call "Old School" in terms of quality of construction.But it is also a little bit too "Old School" when it comes to the harness. In this day/age, the harness should be a little more substantial in the padding department. It's usable for my purposes. I bought it to knock down spot fires (in the unlikely event that they occur) when I'm driving my truck on and around my wheat ranch. If I was a professional fire fighter, the harness would not be acceptable for extended wear/use. That is why I have deducted 1 star. It wouldn't take much for them to improve the harness padding.

I have this as a standby, I am in the process of burning several brush fires and I feel better with this unit on-hand. I did try it out and the pump works smoothly and gives a good stream or spray of water depending on which of the nozzles is being used. I do see what others have said about the plastic hose connection to the tank, it seems to be well protected but if the unit receives some rough usage I believe it would be a weak point, I intend to replace the tank connection in the future with a brass fitting. If someone has not used a fire pump like this the pump is part of the hand-held wand, it slides back and forth, this pump works easily.

Great unit when it works. I had to rebuild it once, due to a factory flaw. Now it's not working again. Just won't pump. You'd think they would have this down by now. It's just a big squirt gun. But I would strongly suggest avoiding this product and getting something that is reliable. This is supposed to be for emegencies, afterall.

I wish I could give a high review but I am having nothing but problems with this. At first it was difficult to get it started to pump, but we did manage that. Now, not quite a year later, and have hardly used it at all, it won't pump at all. I have read and reread the manual and looked at the help on Amazon, but it does not even relate to this item. We really need this in the hot months of summer to both water new trees and for fire protection. It cost a fortune, but now seems wasted. I would be glad to give a higher review if the company could give me some help with this. Emails are unanswered.

Works great

I am replacing a WWII (1940s) vintage 4 gallon civil defense (CD) hand pump fire extinguisher. The Fedco FER501 is quite nice. It is lighter, holds more water & is set up as a back pack. I am using it for home/yard fire protection. We live on 5 acres in a rural area surrounded by woods and fields. We burn off parts of our small field every spring and burn brush from time to time as well as frequent campfires. I bought it a month ago and used it this spring when burning grass. It worked well as expected. Two cautions: 1 - since it is a poly tank it needs to be protected from fire - don't leave it next to the campfire. 2 - the pump is at the end of the hose in the handle mechanism - this will make it more susceptible to freezing compared to my old unit with the pump in the water tank itself. This is an issue in Wisconsin especially in the spring and fall. Overall I am pleased with this unit and plan to use it for at least a of couple decades.